


Your (Not) Average New York Family

by Galaxsya_1na



Series: Your Not Average New York Family [1]
Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Childhood Friends, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Light Angst, Mama Shen Au, No Beta-We all die eventually, Platonic Female/Male Relationships, Slice of Life, Turtle Tots (TMNT)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:14:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25955053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galaxsya_1na/pseuds/Galaxsya_1na
Summary: After escaping Baron Draxum's lab, former action star and Battle Nexus Champion Lou Jitsu must find a way to live with his new appearance and learn how to to take care of four special baby turtles...Luckily for him, an old friend will be by his side in this incredible journey.Yup. This family is not your average New York family.
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Series: Your Not Average New York Family [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1883776
Comments: 29
Kudos: 80





	1. Escape from the (Hidden) City

**Author's Note:**

> "Normal" - Speech  
> "Italics" - Thoughts  
> Italics - Omniscient Narrator

\- Hidden City. Underground of New York... -

A pillar of flame and smoke, which once used to be a lab, lied far behind him and yet Lou Jitsu felt he wasn’t far enough. Wasn’t safe enough.

Not _yet_.

The heels of his now-scorched, ripped platform shoes click against the stony asphalt of the Hidden City. He darts in the dark alleys and sticks to the shadows to conceal himself.

“ _The shadows are a ninja’s greatest ally_.” A stern voice instructs in his mind. Lou treasures the notion at heart but ignores the man behind it.

He screeches to a halt and flattens his back against a building’s wall. From there, he could see a large and well-lit street market filled with many stands where the Yōkai walked, crawled or fluttered about, going by their own business and checking out the items on sale.

This was a problem. He couldn’t just slip by the shadows with all the lights in the street and he couldn’t risk the Yōkai seeing him.

As a human-…

...

...Well…As _the Battle Nexus champion_ , he was too easily recognizable. No doubt that his “fans” would make it easy for Big Mama’s goons to find him and drag him back to the Arena.

He couldn’t let that happen. He barely escaped his latest prison by a hair's thread and the green ooze that splashed over him was drastically changing him.

He couldn’t afford to get caught. _Not when someone depended on him now._

A loud squeak draws his attention to the four little creatures in his arms. The newly transformed baby turtles he rescued squirmed and moved as far as their savior's arms allowed but in doing so made it difficult for Lou Jitsu to sneak by unnoticed with them making so much noise and him having to focus not to drop one of them in the escape.

“Hush, little ones.” He shushed gently “We must tread carefully and silently...like ninjas.”  
That didn’t do much. The babies didn’t understand him and kept squirming and cooing rather loudly. Well...Most of them...

Green #4 in particular looked quite distressed and that worried Lou. Said baby looked a lot like Green, only with purple, pixel-like markings instead of red and yellow stripes. The former action star didn’t like the way the baby shifted around, wincing as if he was in pain.

_Has he gotten hurt during their escape and he didn’t notice?_

A new problem that needed a solution. Fast.

But what could he do? Who could he ask for help?

He was on the run from Big Mama’s goons. He might as well add Draxum to the list. His body has drastically changed, and he had four baby turtles to look after, one of which could be wounded, and he didn’t have a clue on how to help them.

 _“Well, they’re turtles, right?”_ He thought _“If I could take them to a vet and have them checked out maybe- “_ If he could, he would have facepalmed at himself. “But they’re half-human now! They’re too different!”

_He himself was too different…_

If he went to a vet, or a hospital, there was the risk of people freaking out. They would risk being sent to a lab and have them experimented on! Maybe even _dissected_!

Lou felt sick at the thought of such a thing happening to the babies and hugged them protectively to himself.

No. He’ll never allow that! Not if he had a say in it!

But he was back to square one... He didn’t know anyone who could help. No. _Wait_...

_Maybe...Maybe he DID know someone who could..._

“But first ... I need to get out of here…” Lou reached for the pocket inside his ruined suit and fished out a small, round artifact. It was the size of a coin, teal in color and with a M-shaped rune engraved in it. 

Yoshi saw Big Mama use a similar device, once, the day she dragged him to the Hidden City. A similar artifact was now it was his ticket out. With it, he could return to the surface. He just needed to trace the same rune on a surface, possibly somewhere quiet, without any witnesses, and he would be soon be back to the outside world.

 _The surface_... _How long has it been? Weeks? Months? Years?!_ In his cell at the Battle Nexus, without seeing the sun or have any mean of counting the passage of time, he lost track of how long he has been stuck in the underground. It felt like it has been ages since he last saw the sky, or the sun…And with his new appearance...

A pained shriek snapped Lou out his thoughts. Green #4 was pushing away Green #2, who had gotten too close, and Lou spotted small blood drops staining his suit. The spiky turtle looked pretty concerned himself for the smaller turtle and let out a soft, sad whimper.

“No time to be wondering, Yoshi. Time to act!” Lou told himself.

With new resolution, the action star slowly crept by the shadows, recurring to what he was taught so many years ago…When he was still _Hamato Yoshi_.

_“Stick to the shadow…”_

Hidden city was illuminated by magic fires and lanterns. Some places were instead naturally illumined by mystic plants and crystals. But being underground still left many places in the dark. They were perfect covers, but they wouldn’t last for too long. If Lou wanted to go somewhere, he would need to get in the streets. And walking around in his thorn suit, with four small turtles in his arms, would drive attention.

He needed a disguise.

_“Blend with the environment...”_

Lou looked around the dark alley, trying to come up with something until he spotted a worn cloak discarded in a nearby trash can and a ragged basket.

Perfect.

“Just a little more, little ones. We’ll be soon out of here…” Lou soothed as he carefully set the baby turtles in the basket, being extra careful to not aggravate the injured one, and covered them with a ragged cloth to hide them from the Yōkai. He wouldn’t take risks knowing Draxum could still be out there, looking for the turtles.

Once Lou made sure the turtles would be ok, he wrapped the cloak around himself, fixing it to cover himself up entirely. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Lou pulled the hood down over his face as far as he could.

“It’s now or never...” He slipped in the crowd casually, trying not to drive any attention to himself. With the cover of the cloak he looked pretty much like one of the pilgrims he occasionally saw here and there in Hidden City, and the place was also full of cloaked, shady figures from what he has seen in the rare times he was allowed out of the arena.

His plan was working, and he was left ignored. The Yōkai just kept going their own business without bothering him or noticing his presence. Lou just needed to keep it up long enough to-

“Have you seen this human?”

Lou froze. Ahead of him, he recognized a couple of the Battle Nexus guards who were interrogating a small, passerby in the street. They held a poster with his face printed on it and showed it to the small, scared Yōkai. When it failed to give an answer, the guard flung the small Yōkai off.

“Not good…” Lou winced. He needed a new plan.

_"Use the blind spots to your advantage…"_

And he did just that. Taking advantage of the blind spots while the Guards were busy interrogating other nearby Yōkai, Lou quietly snuck around, using large Yōkai, carts and whatnot as coverage.

He made it past the guards and smirked to himself confidently…When a loud squeak from the basket alerted the guards.

“Hey! You!” one of the guards bellowed and Lou froze.

_“Oh no…”_

He lowered his head, trying to conceal himself better under the shadow of the hood. The guard stormed in front of him and held up the poster to his face. “Have you seen this human? He escaped the Battle Nexus this morning and Big Mama wants him back.” The guard said gruffly.

“I’m sorry… I’ve never seen this…human in my life.” Lou lied, changing his voice to not make himself easily recognizable. “I’m just a poor pilgrim on his journey, good sir…”

The guard eyed the disguised Lou critically, staring hard at the shadowed features under the hood. Lou willed himself to stay calm, but his body instinctively readied for a fight, muscles tensing and ready to lash out the moment the Guard made a move. Years of training and the hardships of the Nexus ingrained in him a survival instinct which alerted of an impending fight, something he hoped to avoid if possible.

The guard scoffed “Tch. Get lost.”

“Thank you, sir...” Lou thanked and swiftly walked around the guard when the Yōkai suddenly halted him. “Say…What’cha got there?” they asked, gesturing to the basket in Lou’s hands.

Lou looked over to the item in question, a sudden protective instinct flaring within “Oh, it’s just…some snacks for my journey.” He lied.

The guard, however, grinned malevolently “Snacks, uh? Well, then you wouldn’t mind if I have some.” They reached a clawed hand to the basket, confident that a small pilgrim wouldn’t try something.

_Big mistake._

The punch hit the guard in the solar plexus with enough strength to knock the wind out of them. The guard doubled over with a pained wheeze.

“Don’t you dare touch them.” Lou hissed.

“Hey!” the other guard yelled, unsheathing their weapon and raising it above their head to strike.

  
_"Light as a feather..."_

Lou vanished from the spot and the second guard ended hitting their partner in the head, knocking them out cold to the ground.

“What the-?!” the guard didn’t have time to register what was happening that Lou reappeared behind them and delivered a roundhouse kick to their head, knocking them out, before landing and disappearing again.

The startled nearby Yōkai crowded around the unconscious guards, trying to figure out what just happened, not minding the slim, cloaked figure quietly sneaking away from the scene.

…

The city extended all across the underground, but some places were pretty quiet and desolate. Lou was greeted by a large forest of bioluminescent plants. No one was around.

Making sure he hasn’t been followed and that he was completely alone, he finally allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief. Minus for that minor bump in the road with the guards, he had made it safely far out.

He lifted the cloth off of the basket and smiled reassuringly at the curious tots, glad that they were still all there and safe. They looked up at him chirping in curiosity sans for the injured one who was curled up in a corner and resting.

“We’ll be out of here soon, little ones.” He reassured them. “Just hold on a little longer.” Lou pulled out the artifact from the pocket and draw the rune shape on the wall, careful to trace it correctly over the stone wall of the underground walls.

The large M shaped rune brightened with mystic power and the tell-tale growl was followed by the demon-shaped arch emerging from the stone itself, opening its maws wide to show the bright white and blue light of the portal lying at the bottom of the arch’s “throat”. The same portal in which he was dragged down there was now his way out. Once he made it past, he’d be back to the surface.

Hugging the basket protectively to himself, Lou took a deep breath, closed his eyes and jumped in the light.

…

The portal spat him out in a dark, cold alley and Lou found himself standing under a downpour of icy rain. The thunder rumbled above him and the wind rushed by, but he welcomed the feeling. It has been so long since he last saw rain. He took a deep breath, taking in the smell of the rain and the city around him. He was no longer down there, but back in the world. The surface.

“New York…” He said. He was at home…

A startled squeal snapped him back to reality. He quickly shielded the basket with himself to protect the turtles from the cold water. The four tots cooed and squeaked in surprise and fear, agitated by the sudden change in scenery and smell.

“Hush, it’s alright, little ones. I’m sorry…We’re safe now.” He soothed. He glanced over at the injured one of the four, who hasn’t moved from his corner, but Lou spotted new blood strains in the sheets around him. He gently reached in the basket to pet the turtle in question, which relaxed slightly under the comforting touch.

“Do not worry, little ones...You’re safe now…” He soothed “I know a friend who can help us...”

Covering himself again with the cloak and holding the basket and its precious content close to his chest to shield from the elements, Lou ran off in the rainy night.

The portal vanished behind him with a low growl and then it was silence.


	2. Late Night Meetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A certain someone receives a most surprising (and odd) visit...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: A little bit of blood and injury mentioned, but nothing graphic.  
> Also has "Artistic License-Medicine/Veterinary" trope here because, even if I looked it up, I can't quite seem to find the info I'm looking for.
> 
> Beside that, enjoy Chapter 2!

In a city as big as New York, opportunities weren’t scarce for those who sought to start a new life. Sometimes it was hard and strenuous, but with just about enough effort it could be very rewarding.

Tang Shen was happy with her life after leaving Japan all those years ago, when she chose to pursue her dream career as a veterinary. Animals have always held a special spot in her heart, ever since she was a toddler, and helping them soon became been a lifelong dream.

A dream that has long since come true! She graduated top of her class, finished her internship and now she ran her very own clinic. Sure, it wasn’t big, it sat at the ground floor of a small three-story building she rented and was located in a small corner of a downtown city block, but her clinic held the reputation of being the best in New York ( _modestly_ speaking, of course…).

Tang Shen always greeted her patients with a big smile and knew them all by name. Cats, dogs, rodents, birds, reptiles and even the occasional bug!

Indeed, she was happy with her life… _If only her mother would have been as happy for her…_

Shen shook the intrusive thought out of her head. Thunder rolled outside the window and the vet huffed. It has been raining for _days_ and tonight the storm hit pretty hard.

It was a Friday night and she didn’t have any patient staying overnight or any plan for the evening beside staying at home, so there wasn’t much for her to do.

Her colleague was back home with his wife and their three years old, so Shen chose to have some “Me Time”. She contently lounged on the sofa, clad in her cherry blossom print PJ and treating herself to her favorite ice cream while watching a marathon of her favorite movies.

_Movies…_

_Just like the one Yoshi invited her to participate years ago…_

Shen sighed nostalgically. Quiet, lonely nights like these were bound to carry some thoughts of the past in a way or another.

Yoshi. Her best friend since childhood…

It has been years since he went missing. Nobody knew where he went. One day he just…vanished. Like that. Him and that witch of his “ _girlfriend_ ”.

Shen sneered at the thought. She never liked her. That white-haired presumptuous lady always rubbed her the wrong way.

 _But_ Shen had lost her friendship with Yoshi once years ago, and while she _did_ voice her concerns to her best friend regarding his choice of girlfriend, Shen chose to not insist further than she could. Yoshi was happy with that woman and Shen didn’t want to jeopardize their friendship again…

Then, one night, Yoshi disappeared. No message or note left behind, no clue, no witnesses, _nothing_. He just vanished in thin air…

Shen closed her eyes, sadness and guilt washing over her. It has been many years, but it didn’t make the hurt easier. She should have gone with them, perhaps with an excuse or something. She should have been more insistent that that woman was up to no good.

How ironic…she didn’t want to hurt her friend’s feelings and tried to maintain their friendship, only for her to lose him anyway…

If Yoshi was still there, he would probably crack a joke about it.

With the last thought came a wave of nostalgia. Snippets, short yet so meaningful and carrying happy memories of their youth made Shen smile a little. Oh, the adventures they lived while growing up together in Japan. All of their explorations, the troubles they got into, the laughs, the secrets they shared, the tears…

They’ve always been there for each other, always… _Had she been there that night, when he went missing…could she have changed something?_

The bell rang loudly, and Shen startled. She quickly glanced over at the clock and frowned. _“At this hour? In this weather?”_

It was a calm and quiet neighborhood, but occasionally it happened that a shady figure or two lurked by…

But it could also be an emergency…a worried owner whose pet had gotten sick, or an animal got caught in an accident and needed urgent help.

She quickly descended the stairs to her house/clinic’s door which was fastened by a few locks, phone ready at hand just in case…

And of course, she also had her trusty _tranquilizer dart gun_ on the way! You’re never too careful!

Shen peeked through the spyhole of the door and spotted a shape in the dark barely illuminate by the street lamppost. The figure was taller than her, imposing, wrapped in a ragged cloak and which hood obscured the person’s features.

“Can I help you?” she asked warily.

There was a small pause, the figure shifting uncertainly, until they spoke with a raspy, tired, yet _very familiar voice_.

“Tang Shen?”

The woman froze, eyes widening like saucers. _It…Could it be?!_

“Y-Yoshi?”

The hooded man nodded “Yes…It’s me, Shen… I need your help.”

The woman was speechless, trying to process the situation. Her best friend was back! After all these years! She reached to unlock the door when she realized the situation felt…too good…maybe a little _too good_ to be true.

“Show me your face.” She demanded.

The man faltered “I…Shen, I can’t…”

“Why not?” she queried, suspicious.

“Something…Something happened to me, and-…And I-I’m…” the figure staggered, struggling to find his words. There was a long pause, drowned out by the downpour, when the figure’s head drooped in defeat and he sighed sadly

“I’m not the man I used to be…” The words were uttered with so much sorrow and misery that Shen couldn’t help but feel pity for the stranger, but she still held her ground.

“Show me.” She insisted, a tad bit softer.

The figure hesitantly reached up to the hood and pulled it off, revealing a shocking sight.

A scratched, bruised, clearly non-human face framed by unkept medium black hair. The man had large, rodent-like teeth; a mouse-like nose coupled with long whiskers and black eyes.

_Shen could recognize those eyes anywhere._

“Yoshi…” The tranquilizer gun slipped out her fingers and landed on the floor, her hands reached up to her mouth in shock and disbelief, tears gathering in her eyes.

He gave her a small, sad smile and nodded. “Long time no see…my friend…”

Shen quickly pried open the locks, all but dragging her friend inside the clinic and out of the cold rain. Her mind raced miles per hour with questions but also a mix of feelings like joy, relief, fear and concern.

“Yoshi! Wha-?! What happened to you?! Where have you been?! How-?!”

“Shen, wait, calm down.” He spoke, trying to calm her “I’ll explain everything, I promise, but I need your help first.”

“My help? Oh gosh, are you hurt?”

“Well, yes, actually…” he admitted sheepishly, but quickly strengthened himself “B-but don’t mind me now! Someone needs your help more than I do!”

“Someone? Yoshi, what are you talking about?” she asked.

The former action star removed his cloak to reveal a ragged basket he was hiding underneath, close to him. And inside said basket laid four, small green creatures that chirped and cooed curiously at their surroundings.

Shen did a double take, eyes widening even further. “Y-Yoshi…Wha-…What are _those_?!”

“Turtles.” He answered “Or…well…they were, before Draxum turned them into… _this_ …”

“Drax-who?! What-?! How-?!?” Shen was having a hard time processing everything; struggling to reboot her mind. “Yoshi, what the _heck_ _is going on_?!”

“I’ll explain but- “

“You better, Hamato Yoshi, because I’m _not_ moving from here until you explain yourself!” she snapped.

Yoshi winced. When Shen got angry, she looked far scarier than any monster he fought in the Battle Nexus. She was a short and skinny woman, always has been, but a single glare of hers could send tigers running for their life.

He gulped “Uh…Ok then, so…do you remember the stories our grandparents told us about the Yōkai?”

Shen nodded “Yeah. The ones you said were, and I quote: “ _A bunch of fairytales bogus_ ”?” she emphasized by making quote marks with her fingers.

Yoshi blushed and rubbed the back of his neck “Uh, yes… _Weeell_ … _Maaaybe_ they weren’t such fairy tales like I thought after all…”

“ _Meddle not in the affairs of the Yōkai_ ” my grandmother used to say…” Shen recited, remembering the old stories her grandparents taught her “How did you get involved?”

“Remember my girlfriend?” he asked.

Shen crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow at him “ _Which_ one?”

“The, uh, the _last_ one…” he said. “The one you really, _really_ disliked.”

“Uh-hu, the skimpy witch.” She nodded “Go on.”

“Weeell…Turns out she’s actually a Jorōgumo who kidnapped me and made me fight in an arena underground for the Yōkai entertainment.”

“WHAT?!” Shen yelled, rage surging forward “Oh, that no good, skimpy, ugly piece of-!”

“Not now, Shen, I need you to focus!” Yoshi pressed.

Shen gritted her teeth and took a deep breath to calm herself “Ok, fine, I get it. Sorry… So, how did you escape?”

“Long story short, I became champion. Stuck with the title. A Yōkai, Baron Draxum, kidnapped me from the Nexus to use my DNA to create an army of mutants to destroy humanity and…well…They are…” he glanced over at the little creatures in his hands.

Shen followed his gaze “You mean…these turtles-?”

Lou nodded “I couldn’t let him turn these innocent little creatures into violent monsters…So I broke free to save them from Draxum’s schemes, but…” he glanced over at his ripped gloves, where he could see his now elongated fingers with sharp claws breaking through the fabric. Not to mention the tail he had now, or his overall new appearance…

Shen looked back at Yoshi, then back at the baby turtles. It was…a _lot_ to process.

Her childhood best friend, who has gone missing for years, stuck who-knows-where in a monster-run arena, suddenly shows up at her doorstep, worn out and turned into a rat-man, carrying a basket full of mutated baby turtles thanks to a mystic meddling of some sort…

“Oh Yoshi…” Shen sighed “You _always_ had a penchant for troubles...”

“I know. I should have listened to you…” he admitted “Look. I…I know I’m asking a lot, but please…I need your help! I have to know if these babies are alright. One of them got hurt when we escaped. I cannot risk taking them where people will try to hurt them. You are the only one I can trust…” he pleaded “Please, Shen…If not for me, then do it for them…”

The woman looked back at the babies, who were huddled all close together, squeaking and chirping in curiosity and wariness at their surroundings.

Shen was a vet who could take care of _many_ animals, even the oddest, exotic ones…But _this_? This was unpreceded. This was out of her field of competence.

The babies looked like turtles, but their biology has drastically changed, becoming so human-like, while keeping their past animal features, like shells and scales…

If they were more human than animals, or an odd mix of both…There was a huge risk for the babies in trying to help a creature she had little to no reference on how to handle or take care of…

_But they’re living beings…Young, innocent living beings who needed help._

_And Shen never turns her back to who needed her!_

“Alright.” She settled “I’ll check them out and try my best to help them, but I can’t promise anything. I don’t know their biology.”

That was enough for Yoshi. He smiled gratefully at her “Thank you, Shen…I knew I could count on you.”

“You know I love animals too much to say no.” She smiled, gently taking the basket and its precious content in her arms. “Look…I know I’m asking a lot right now, but I’ll need your help. You know these turtles better than I do. So, go wash up, clean and dress your wounds to lower any risk of infection for you or the babies, put one of my spare work coats on and come back here. I’ll get everything ready in case any of the turtles will need an operation in the meantime.”

“Will do. Thank you, my friend.” He thanked her. Shen nodded and went to the room where she held the visits and Yoshi went to do as he was told.

As he cleaned up and dressed his wounds the best he could, he couldn’t help but stare at the changes his body suffered. He looked down at his hands ( _once human hands_ ) and he could feel his rat tail swish nervously behind him too. An alien, unnatural feeling to him.

He was more of a rat than a human, or a very odd, really weird mix of both.

He looked up at the mirror in the room, grimacing over the changes in his appearance. The rat-like snout, the rodent teeth, the pointy ears that were peeking out from under his hair…

He wasn’t human. Not anymore.

For all that was worth, he wasn’t even Lou Jitsu or Hamato Yoshi anymore… _and he would never be again. He could never be the same. Would never be the same…_

 _Who_ was he now?

_ What _ _was he now?_

He almost collapsed at the dark thoughts that kept piling and plaguing his mind and he rested against the sink, gripping the edges to try and ground himself to reality and not fall into despair. He took several deep breaths to calm himself.

No…He couldn’t lose it now. He didn’t have time for doubts or fears. Not now. Not. _Right._ Now!

There was someone who counted on him to keep it together… _Several_ who now depended on him to stay strong, just a little bit longer.

Building up the strength and courage, Yoshi fixed up some new gloves, trying to ignore how his claws threatened to poke through the latex and slipped one a spare of Shen’s work coats as she instructed.

Back to the clinic, he found Shen had prepared the examination table. The basket with the babies sat safely to a side of the desk while a metal tray with a blanket inside sat on the other end.

He must have taken longer than he thought in the room, because it seemed like Shen couldn’t keep waiting and got at work by checking out the biggest turtle, the spiky one. He couldn’t help but smile. Shen has always been an eager helper.

“Careful... Green #2 is quite bitey.” He warned teasingly.

“All turtles bite, Yoshi.” She informed him ‘matter-of-fact’. She then looked up at him with an arched, unamused eyebrow “Green #2? Seriously, man?”

“What?” he asked, puzzled.

“You still suck at naming.” She chortled “Since we were children you’ve been _terrible_ at it.”

Yoshi pouted at her and crossed his arms “Well, then _you_ try come up with a better name.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it, I will.” She smirked tauntingly before schooling herself back to her professional self “Ok. What can you tell me?”

“They… _We_ got mutated by a substance Draxum called Ooze…And I think Green #4 got hurt during the escape.” He told her.

“Green-?! Ok. First thing in the morning, I’ll name them.” She wowed “Anyway…I already checked this one out… Judging by the shell and the overall physiology, I think this one’s an Alligator Snapping Turtle.”

“Is he alright?” Yoshi asked worriedly.

“Minus for a few scratches and a couple of bruises, they seem fine. However, I could use a blood sample from the turtles and from you to run a few tests.”

“Do you have to?” he groaned. He always hated needles.

“Professionally speaking? Yes.” Shen nodded “I need to see the extent of the changes the ooze has on the body at cellular level and check if it may have harmful side effects. My best guess, for what I can see, is that the Ooze could be strictly laced in your DNA…Besides, with a DNA test we could figure out more about the turtles individually, like their ages and gender.”

Yoshi was impressed “You can tell all of that from a blood sample?”

“Gender in some turtle species is determined by the temperature of the egg during incubation.” Shen explained “As for the age, counting the ‘rings’ on a scute hints at it but is a rough estimate as they develop in certain periods, so it’s not 100% correct.” She pulled a clean syringe out of its packet and readied the items “Since we haven’t been there to check on the temperature or the time they hatched, plus the mutation factor, I think it would be nice to try and figure something about them.”

She then smirked mischievously “Or…You can try name them even if they have a - “

“OK! No! I get it! You made your point!” Yoshi cut her abruptly, flustered. He groaned “You are _terrible_ …”

“Really? ‘Cuz I think it would have been really funny. I once had a calico the owner named George…” She chuckled. “Ok, ok, fine I’ll stop. But jokes aside…please hold the baby still while I retrieve a sample.”

Yoshi nodded. Gently, he held the curious tot still while Shen carefully tied a tourniquet around the baby’s arm, making sure to not harm them. Once she made sure it was safe to proceed, she inserted the needle in the tot’s arm and drew out a small sample of blood.

The baby shrieked annoyedly and tried to move away, but Yoshi gently yet firmly held them in place. “It’s Ok, Green #2.” He soothed “She only wants to help.”

“So sorry sweetie...” Shen apologized sincerely. She removed the needle and quickly patched the baby up “Here. It’s alright. See? All done.”

The tot pouted angrily at her, beak scrunching into a supposedly threatening, but actually adorable scowl. Shen began to gently pet the turtle’s head and the baby quickly gave up the grudge and purred contently. They reached up to her and Shen smiled when the baby curled their tiny, three-fingered hand around her index.

“Wow…It’s amazing.” She said, fascinated “The ooze gave them a degree of dexterity as well…their nails-ern…fingers move so similar to a human…”

“Well, Draxum did use my human DNA.” Yoshi said. He then gently set the tot in the nearby trail.

“Ok. This one’s done. Who’s Green #4?” Shen asked.

Yoshi looked among the turtles left in the basket and picked up the tot in question. The baby shrieked loudly and trashed about in his hold, trying to get away.

“So sorry, little one.” Yoshi apologized sincerely and set the baby down on the table. The tot relaxed when the hands left them be.

“This is the one who got hurt?” Shen asked and gently checked the baby over. Unlike the snapper, this one fussed and pouted with every poke and tried to swat the offending hands away and curl up on itself.

“Ok, so…I think we got a softshell turtle here...” Shen realized “I can’t spot any injury. They’ve got a couple scratches but nothing serious and- _wait_!” She gently turned the tot so it would lay on the plastron and Shen winced at the sight.

In the tissue where the plastron connected to the shell there was a glass shard jabbed in, the injury outlined by a thin line of blood.

“I found the problem. A piece of glass punctured the side.”

“What?! Is…Is it bad?” Yoshi gasped, chiding himself for being so careless.

“Thankfully no.” Shen shook her head “It’s not bad. The shard is small, and the injury isn’t life-threatening… But we need to take it out, clean the wound and stitch it up.”

She looked up at the rapidly-paling, anxious rat-man and gave him a reassuring smile. “It’s ok, Yoshi. I know it sounds bad, but it isn’t. The baby will be fine.”

“A-Are you sure? Will he be ok?” he asked worriedly.

“Absolutely. I’ll run the procedure myself. But we must be careful not to aggravate the wound and not cause too much stress to the baby.”

“What if…what if you used anesthesia?” he suggested. He didn’t want the baby to be in unnecessary pain if he could help it.

“On other occasions, I would, but…” she looked apprehensively at the tot “I fear there could be side effects. I told you, I don’t know their biology. I can’t just try or ‘guess’ a dosage, Yoshi. What if it kills them?”

“No!” Yoshi blurted out, a little too loud than intended. “S-Sorry, I…I just…”

Shen gave him a comforting smile and set her hand on his shoulder “I know. You care a lot about them…It’s gonna be all right, Yoshi. I promise you. They _all_ will be alright.”

“I know. I trust you.” He said. “But…I don’t get it, though …I thought turtles had hard shells.”

“The majority, yes. But Softshell turtles don’t have a carapace made of scute like most. Theirs is leathery. Strong, but doesn’t offer the same protection.” She explained, preparing tweezers and stitches “Ok. Now for the hard part…Hold the baby down gently but _firmly_. Keep them as still as possible while I remove the shard. Be careful because Softshell bite hard. Not as much as a Snapper, but still... Think you can do it?”

“I’ll try my best.” He promised. He looked down at the wary tot “Be strong little one…” he encouraged.

Yoshi gently held the baby still; Shen carefully took hold of the shard with the tweezers and gently began to pry it out.

The softshell shrieked loudly in pain and tried to squirm from under Yoshi’s hand. Their pained cries alerted the other three nearby turtles, who answered back in similar distress.

“I know, baby, I know…” Shen tried to soothe the turtle “You’re doing very well, sweetie, just a little more and-There!”

The shard came out smoothly and with little blood on it. Shen quickly set it aside and cleaned up the tot’s wound. She then proceeded to carefully stitch it up with a speed she honed through years of experience and practice. “There. All done.”

Yoshi picked up the crying tot and gently cradled them in his arms. “Shhh… there, little one. It’s over. All better now…” he soothed “You’ve been very strong and brave, little one.”

The baby slowly calmed down. Sobs turning to hiccups until they fully calmed down and curled up against Yoshi, nuzzling into the coat.

Shen smiled at the scene of her best friend holding the tiny baby in his arms. He noticed her staring at him with a knowing smile “What?”

“I just…never seen you acting like this. All father-like.” Shen smiled fondly “It’s so cute and sweet.”

“Eh…What can I say? I just…” he shrugged and smiled down at the baby “I just remember the old times…”

Shen nodded in understanding “I know… She would be very proud of you right now…”

He smiled nostalgically, remembering happier times of his childhood…Days _before that fateful day in the park…_

“Thank you, Shen…It means a lot to me.” He said.

Now that the baby was finally calm, Yoshi carefully set them down in the same trail where the biggest tot was. The largest baby crawled up to their friend and curled up next to them, his larger frame easily encasing the smaller one to give them comfort and protection.

“Thank you, Shen. I wouldn’t have known what to do without you.” Yoshi thanked her.

“ _Psh_. It’s my job and my pleasure.” She smiled “I picked a bit of blood samples from the shard for testing. I’ll also keep tabs on the baby’s recover for the following days. Is anyone else injured?”

“Not that I think of. The others seemed fine, but let’s check them too just in case. Starting with…Green here.” Yoshi said, picking said tot from the basket.

 _“I am SO renaming them...”_ Shen thought exasperatedly but smiled when she saw the striped baby reach up to Yoshi, asking for a hug. “Looks like they like you a lot.”

“Green is a little grabby.” Yoshi chortled and handed the tot over to Shen. She noticed this one was, physically wise, very similar to the softshell, except that it had lighter skin tone, a hard shell, red markings over their eyes and bright yellow stripes instead of pixel-like markings.

“I bet my entire ice cream supply that this is a red-eared slider.” She said.

“How can you tell for sure?”

“I have a few recurring who own a turtle or two of these for pets.” She said “This one seems alright. Just a minor scrape. Nothing to worry about. We’ll patch them up too and take a sample.” She repeated the process and took a blood sample too from the tot in question with Yoshi’s help before setting the striped baby in the trail as well. The tot crawled up to the other two and curled up next to the softshell, effectively keeping the injured one protectively sandwiched in the middle.

“And that leaves the last but not the least.” Yoshi looked at the fourth, smallest turtle that was now the only one left in the basket.

The baby must have realized it was now quite alone, but unlike the other three, they got scared and fully retracted in their shell, surprising both Shen and Yoshi.

“An ornate box turtle! I don’t see many of them.” The woman gaped.

“Uhm…How do we get them out now?” Yoshi asked quizzically, picking up the shell.

“I think I know how…Try to draw circles over their shell. It might calm them down.”

Yoshi did just that. He drew slow, small, soothing circles over the shell with his thumb, tracing over the bright yellow markings. After several minutes of repeating the process, the baby slowly peeked out again, chirping softly.

“Hello, little one.” he greeted. The baby hesitated upon seeing Shen “It’s alright.” Yoshi soothed “She’s a friend.”

“Hello, there.” He greeted as well, smiling gently and held out her hand, waiting for the baby to come out on their own, and smiled when the small one slipped a limb out the hiding and settled their tiny hand over hers. The baby turtle fully came out its hiding and smiled back at the two. Shen noticed this one had the darkest skin out of the four, with bright orange spots.

“Awww! They’re so cute. So pure!” Shen swooned. Yoshi agreed and handed the tot to Shen, who also checked them out for injuries, finding none thankfully. The baby still whined a little when she took a blood sample, but quickly relaxed and nuzzled Shen’s hand.

“I can’t believe someone wanted to turn them into soldiers...” Shen said, her smile faltering. The thought of these babies, so small and so innocent, enslaved to become soldiers sent cold chills down her spine and made her blood boil. _What kind of monster could do this?!_

“Luckily, that will never happen.” Yoshi said, perceiving her anger and sharing the same thought. “They’re safe now.”

“All thanks to you, Yoshi.” Shen smiled gratefully. “You saved them.”

She put the baby down with the others and watched as the smallest went and snuggled its way between the softshell and slider, and quickly fell asleep.

“Ok…I think we’re done with them…” she said, relaxing a bit. She turned to her best friend “What about you?”

“I’m fine, really, just a few bruises here and there…” Yoshi said.

“Yes, that, but also…are you…you know… _alright_?” she asked again.

Yoshi knew very well what his lifelong friend meant, but he was so exhausted and drained that all he wanted now was to sleep and momentarily forget his plight. He didn’t want to deal with the dark thoughts plaguing him. Not now at least…

“I’ll be ok, Shen…I just…I’m just very tired right now…”

She nodded understandingly. It has been a long tiring night and they needed rest. Yoshi in particular would need it.

They had a lot to talk about tomorrow.

“I…I have a terrarium in case I need to keep some patients overnight, but I don’t think it would be large enough to house them all.” She said “But I _do_ have plenty of spare blankets and pet beds. I could make them a nest.” _Not to mention it would be weird to keep four ‘humanoid’ turtles in a small tank…_

“I don’t know how I could ever repay you, Shen.” Yoshi said.

“Don’t thank me. It’s my job and my pleasure to help.” She waved casually “You know I love animals too much.”

He chuckled “Oh, I do remember well.” _How could he forget all of those baby birds, kittens or the occasional snake that found its way in Shen’s care when they were children?_

“If you’re hungry, help yourself. Mi casa es su casa. As the say goes” Shen encouraged.

“Oh! Do you still make those delicious homemade cakes?” he asked, eyes sparkling.

“How could I not?” she grinned and went to retrieve the items while Yoshi raided her fridge.

Shen’s homemade cakes were just as he remembered. They were the best even after all these years!

Man…He had missed normal human food. Not that hidden city’s choice of buffets was disgusting, some dishes were very tasty, but he’d rather eat something that didn’t squirm around or had eyes looking everywhere.

He also took the chance to warm up a cup of milk because it always helped him sleep…and he would need to after all what happened that day.

_He would need strength to face tomorrow…_

Back to the living room, Shen had fixed up a cluster of pillows, blankets and a large soft dog bed where she put the turtles once she deemed the “nest” to be safe and warm enough for them to sleep in.

“Ok. They’re in for tonight…” she said, overlooking proudly at her pillow fort/nest. Yoshi smiled warmly to see the babies so relaxed and safe, sleeping among the warm and soft blankets and pillows.

“Thank you, Shen…” Yoshi said, “I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

“That’s what friends are for.” Shen smiled at him, but there was a lingering worry and sadness in her eyes.

“I’ll be ok, Shen.” Yoshi reassured her “I just need a rest…”

“Alright…” she conceded “But, for anything you need, just say so, ok? You’re my friend, Yoshi. Whatever you need, even if just to talk, I’ll be right here for you. Always…”

“Thank you, Shen…” he said gratefully “Goodnight…”

“Rest well, Yoshi…” She bid and left her friend to rest.

Yoshi sighed to himself. He was happy and proud with himself for saving the babies from Draxum, and happy to see his long-lost friend again…but he was still… _off_ … about many things.

Right now, he only wanted to sleep and just…forget his ailment right now.

He laid down on the sofa, pulling the blanket over himself and closed his eyes, exhaustion winning over the battle and he fell in a deep, dreamless sleep.

…

Once the house was quiet again and Shen found herself alone in the clinic, she allowed herself to drop down on a chair now that the adrenaline wore off her system.

The entire situation was so surreal, but there was no denying that it was happening. All of this was real.

Her best friend was back, and she was happy to see him alive, but he was so… changed…

She feared for her friend, worrying over how he’ll cope with all that happened…

And the babies…What now?

New thoughts, doubts and ‘what ifs’ began to crowd in her mind. The uncertainty of a future that she’ll have to face starting tomorrow and especially for her best friend…

What would happen from then on? What did the future hold in store? And how could she help her best friend? He was struggling with many things…

They needed to talk. She wouldn’t push him to, but sooner or later they would have to talk about what happened…But for now…

Shen glanced over to the five vials of blood samples sitting on the desk near the machinery she would soon need. Each one discerned by a colorful sticker.

She sighed, stretching her arms out and reaching the vial labelled with a bright blue sticker.

“This is going to be a looong night…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not 100% super-extra proud of this chapter. I feel there could be a lil better, but after several revisions I thought it would be ok to post.  
> Again, English is not my first language and...well...I'm still working on it.
> 
> I also apologies for making this chapter so long, I just wanted to add them baby turtles.
> 
> Comments are always appreciated! Feel free to speak your mind and constructive critics/tips are always welcome! So I can try make this fic even better.
> 
> Thank you very much for reading and I'll see you in the next chapter! Stay safe! <3


	3. Day 1- Start!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tang Shen and Yoshi have a talk...more or less. 
> 
> Oh! And Shen has some interesting news.

Star movie Lou Jitsu, once known as Hamato Yoshi, woke up to the sound of chirping birds and to the sunlight filtering through the window blinds instead of the distant roar of the crowd or to a Yokai slamming open the door of his cell.

For a moment, he kind of forgot where he was, wondering how he ended up on a sofa instead of his cell’s cold floor until the events of the previous day darted back to him. 

The Battle Nexus, the lab, Draxum, the tur-  _ wait _ ... _ WHERE ARE THE TURTLES?! _

He jolted up and looked around the room frantically until he spotted the four babies peacefully sleeping in a large, soft dog bed, comfortably nestled among piles of blankets and pillows. Yoshi sighed in relief. 

Oh yes...He was at Shen’s house...

Figuring there wasn't much for him to do right now, and that he was too awake to fall asleep again, he stood up and tip-toed his way out the living room, careful to not wake up the babies.

In the kitchen, he found his best friend sitting at the table, several papers laid out before her, a hot cup of steamy hot coffee in her hands.

"Good morning." Shen greeted him.

"'Morning." He greeted her back. He then spotted the dark bags under Shen's eyes "You've been up all night?!"

She chuckled "You knock at my door after years of going missing, looking like crap, carrying a bunch of mutant baby turtles…Let's say it was quite a shock for me…"

"Right…" Yoshi conceded. Probably he too would have stayed awake all night if not for the exhaustion.

He decided to help himself to a cup of tea and some breakfast. 

The awkward, heavy silence befalling the room drowned the chirping birds and the hum of the cars out in the street until Shen gathered the strength to ask. "How are you feeling?" 

"Compared to a cold, hard cell's floor? Never better." Yoshi murmured. Once the tea was ready, he poured the content in a cup and stared at his blurry reflection on the drink's surface. Nothing has changed from last night. Same rat features, perhaps a little bit more evident than last night.

"For the rest…I…I'm not quite sure yet…" he muttered.

Shen cast her eyes down in sadness "I'm sorry…I...I wish I could have done more to help you…" she lamented.

Yoshi sat on the other end of the table, giving her a friendly smile "Shen, you  _ did _ help me. You helped those little creatures too. I wouldn’t have known what to do if-."

"It's not that, it's…" the woman gripped her coffee a little tighter between her fingers "I...I should have gone with you that night…If only I had been there, maybe I could have done something. I could have stopped her if only I had-"

"There’s nothing you could have done, Shen." he interrupted her "I know Big Mama. She's a yokai. Powerful too. If I couldn't stop her myself, there was nothing you could have done either. Believe me... She would have kidnapped you too, or even hurt you just to get to me."

"But I-!"

"No." He stopped her "What happened that night…It's on me. I should have listened to you...You advised me so many times about Big Mama and yet I...I chose to ignore it. I’m sorry, Shen." 

"Yoshi, don't blame yourself. She had  _ everyone _ fooled.” the vet reasoned. “And you were in love. When someone’s in love they tend to overlook things, but nothing of what happened is your fault... Besides...I mean... who could have ever imagined she was a Yokai?"

“Yeah..although there had been some signs here and there...yet I didn’t figure it out.”

Shen arched a brow “What signs?”

“Uhm...Eating flies and sneezing webs?” he said, mortified.

“Ok... those were pretty  _ obvious _ ones…” she deadpanned. Really? Out of all red flags to ignore? But kept the comment to herself. “But! As I said: you were in love. It’s easy to overlook red flags when you’re in love with someone.”

Not that it helped much the situation, since Yoshi still cast his eyes down to his tea with a forlorn look.

Shen didn’t know what to do to help him...If only she could rewind time and avoid all of this... If only she was could return humanity to her best friend, she  _ would _ , but… she  _ couldn't _ .

She could only offer what little help she could give: stay by her friend’s side. Just like they did when they were much younger, and hope things would turn for the best.

In all honesty...she figured that mutation, for how far fetched it could be, wasn’t so far from the instances in which someone lost an important part of themselves, a part of who they were. Like a runner who couldn’t use their legs to run or walk anymore, or a surgeon who lost their ability to keep their hands firm and steady...It was a different yet fundamentally similar situation.

Losing a part of yourself could be a very sensitive subject to talk about. But...sometimes...  _ someone willing to listen was just enough to ease the pains and fears. _

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked gently.

He looked at her. She saw his hesitation. The doubts and the unwillingness to face reality. She wouldn’t push him to talk if he didn’t want to...but she hoped that he would, sooner rather than later.

Yoshi was conflicted. 

When they were kids, listening to each other was all they had, seeking each other for comfort in the dire times when growing up together in Japan. 

She had listened to him during those days when his Ninja training became too much and he just needed to disappear for a few hours.

He listened to her when she talked about her mother. How the nasty lady put her daughter through some serious harsh times every time Shen’s father was out of the house.

She listened to him the day his mother... _ went away… _

And he listened to her when she lost her father...

Even if they couldn’t help each other, even if they couldn’t return what they have lost, they always had been there to listen and comfort each other during their darkest times…

_ Maybe he should- _

He opened his mouth to say something but closed it quickly after. The warring emotions inside of him, in the end, gave in to his pains.

"No…" He said, dejectedly.  _ “Not yet at least…” _

Shen nodded, understanding, and smiled reassuringly "It's ok, Yoshi…Take your time."

Yes, he would bide his time, but he knew that one day they would have to talk about it...But right now the wound was still deep. Too fresh to expose.

Shen just hoped her friend would one day open up, hopefully before the dark thoughts crowded his mind. But unless the situation came to that, she would do what she did best. Be patient and wait.

Yoshi knew her friend well enough to guess what she was thinking, and he gave her a small yet grateful smile "Thank you, Shen."

"Hey, that's what best friends are for." she smiled back.

_ One day perhaps...One day they would talk... but until then... _

Yoshi glanced over at the papers on the table, opting to change the subject "So...What did you do last night then?"

"Well…” Shen clicked her tongue, gathering the papers in order “As I pulled an all-nighter, I ran a couple of tests and got a few results." 

"Really?” he asked, now curious, “What did you find?”

"Ok, so…to begin with: the turtles are all males." She informed "The hard part was in determining their age... The mutation must have done something because the results made little sense, or at least compared to what I’ve studied.”

“As in?” he asked, curious.

“The Snapping turtle is two years old. The softshell and the Slider are both one year old with a difference of a couple or so months between them, and the box turtle is around four months old... I have reasons to think the mutation caused a far wider age gap."

"An age gap?" Yoshi arched an eyebrow.

"Turtles take  _ years _ to mature into adults. Size alone is usually a giveaway to tell adults from youngsters. The box turtle and the slider, based on their size alone, would be adults by now, but the tests confirm they're infants.” Shen explained “I think their real ages vary from months or weeks to a few days when they were still just normal turtles. Then the ooze kind of…  _ upgraded _ their animal ages to human-like age?" she shrugged.

“Could it be because of my human DNA...” he theorized.

She nodded and picked up another paper "And since we're on the topic... I did a few tests and confirmed my theory. The Ooze is strictly entwined to your DNA.”

She showed him the paper “I tried a few things and the results are the same.  _ Any _ attempt to extract the Ooze from causes severe and fast deterioration of the cells and tissue, so it's very,  _ very _ bad for you or the turtles if that was to happen." She stressed the last words.

"I…I see…" Yoshi cast his eyes down.  _ Looks like there wasn't going to be a chance to cure his condition anytime soon… _

Shen was saddened as well but tried to lighten up the mood with the bright side of her discoveries "There is good news though...The ooze has low radiations but for what I could see, it doesn't seem to cause any illnesses. I discovered it speeds up healing, so I think the scratches and bruises will heal within the day, and we could remove the baby's stitches real soon."

"That's good news." He said, happy that there was something good and that the babies would be safe and sound after all. He then chuckled a little "But now I guess I'll have to call Green #2 as Green #1 instead."

"Yeaaah… _ No _ . Just  _ no _ , man..." She deadpanned. Shen reached to the last paper but hesitated "There's...There’s just another thing you need to know…But I don’t think you’ll like it." 

"Is it bad? Are the babies ok?" he asked, worried.

"They're fine, Yoshi.” she reassured him “It's just…the Ooze changed the turtles' genetic code by breaking it down and rebuilding it in a way I've never seen before…”

“I don’t understand.”

“Try to follow me, ok?... Each turtle retains the DNA from their bio animal parents, but their code was…Uhm...” she struggled to put the process in simple terms "You can say their code was…  _ 'split' _ ...to accommodate your genes."

"And that means?" he asked, not quite catching up and taking a sip of his tea.

"Each turtle shares a third of your DNA..." Shen said, "You could say... you're this turtles' 'Father'."

Yoshi’s eyes widened and he sputtered out the tea, he jolted up from the chair. "WHAT?!"

"Yeah…I figured you'd react like that…" Shen winced. 

“Y-You say, I’m...I’m these turtles-?! That I’m-I’m...I’M THEIR  _ DAD _ ?!?” 

“By a  _ third _ actually...” She said, but it was still pretty much of a confirmation as any.

Yoshi sat back down on the chair, feeling suddenly overwhelmed. “This is...I don’t even…How-?!”

“I-It’s not so bad. I mean…I know it must be a shock, but I’m sure we can figure something out...” Shen said, fearing the situation was just too much to handle for him and fearing she might have broken his brain...Probably already had.

Yoshi groaned, passing a hand over his face “Oh great...now what?”

“Well...depends...” Shen said, “What do you want to do now?”

“I...I don’t know.” Yoshi admitted.

_ He wasn’t thinking about what to do other than taking the babies away from Draxum’s clutches and saving them from his schemes... _

The vet set aside her papers “Listen...I’ve been thinking about this whole situation and I wanted to suggest you stay for a while. My house isn’t very big, but we can rearrange stuff to make it more spacious and it would be much safer for you and the turtles. At least until you can sort things out.”

“Shen, I can’t. You’ve already done so much for me and I can’t-” Yoshi started. His friend already had her things to worry about, and he found it unfair to extend his stay. She already has done so much for him and-

“Yoshi.” she interrupted him firmly “First: You’re my very best friend! When I was at my lowest, you were there for me, remember?”

Yoshi grimaced. How could he forget those days? Or the ones that followed after? 

“You were there for me. When my mother began making my life hell, you were always there for me. We’ve always been there  _ for each other _ through thick and thin since we were kids.” she continued. “So Kami help me, I am here for you. I am here for you like you always were for me.”

“Shen…”

“No can do, pal. You’re stuck with me.” She grinned determinedly.

Yoshi sighed. He could try and find valid arguments and continue this for hours, but Shen was just like that. Stubborn. Very stubborn when she set her mind to it. There’s a reason she ran her own clinic after all...

“You’ve always been so stubborn.” Yoshi rolled his eyes.

“Me? My good sir, I think you forget someone just as stubborn.” she elbowed him.

“Fine. You win...But  _ only _ for a few weeks.” Yoshi said, “As soon as I can, I’ll go look for somewhere...Somewhere to live.”

Shen wasn’t very convinced of that last bit. Because now, for her friend,  _ ‘somewhere to live’  _ was a little hard to find for a half-human, half-rat being. 

Certainly couldn’t look for an apartment or a home of any sort...

His new home will have to be somewhere secluded. Hidden. Away from society…

Shen chose not to think further into it. It was a bit too depressing right now.

“Alright... It’s a deal...But always remember that my door is open for you.” Shen said. “So you can stay for as long as you like.”

“Will do.” he nodded. “You’re the best.”

She grinned “Why, thank you.” she then added “Besides… I need to keep track of the turtles. If you stay, I can check more regularly their progress.  _ Plus _ , one of these days, I’ll sit you down and teach you everything I know about turtles and how to take care of them.”

_ Or at least, how to take care of ‘normal’ turtles...but it was still a start. _

She then snapped her fingers “Oh! Speaking of which! I need to check on the stitches.” She had to make sure they were healing correctly and if her theory about the Ooze’s healing factor was positive.

Shen turned to the kitchen counter to pick something up and Yoshi noticed it was a box full of colorful ribbons, like the ones used to decorate or for sewing.

She winked at him “Oh, you’ll see soon enough... You go ahead and have breakfast.” she then sauntered off to the living room.

Yoshi was perplexed.  _ What was that about?... _

/...Later.../

After breakfast, Yoshi returned to the now open and fully lit living room and found the turtles awake and crawling within the confines of the dog bed. He couldn’t help but smile tenderly at the sight of the curious little tots. They were so adorable...

What he then noticed was that the colorful ribbons from before were now around their wrist, each one neatly tied in a cute little bow.

"Uh…Shen?" he called "What did you do?"

Shen smirked smugly at him "Since you suck at naming, I took the chance to look up for some  _ real names _ for them on the internet."

"Alright, but, uh… what's with the bows?" he pointed at them.

"Because you're not just bad at naming, you also can't tell them apart." Shen smirked "So I thought I'd color-code them for your convenience! You're welcome." She gave a theatrical bow.

"Ah-ha, really funny. So, may I know their new names  _ 'Oh great namer of turtles' _ ?" He said teasingly, going along with her antics.

"I called the snapping Turtle Raphael. Is the one in red.” she pointed at said spiny tot “The one with the purple bow is Donatello. The blue one is Leonardo and the orange one is Michelangelo." Shen said.

"Wait...You named them after renaissance artists?" he asked, a little weirded out by the choice. “And you said  _ I _ suck at naming...”

"It's not easy to find fitting names. And no, I'm not calling them like Donald Duck's nephews plus one." Shen said. "Besides, the names match, are easy to remember and have such a nice ring to them. So...What do you think?"

"Well, I guess they are better than just calling them all  _ Green _ ." He admitted.

_ "Yet another score for Tang Shen, ladies, and gents."  _ The vet grinned proudly to herself.

So, the newly named and color-coded Raphael and Leonardo were busy testing the soft edges of the dog bed before Leonardo clumsily slipped out and landed on his plastron on the carpet. He recovered pretty quickly through and gleefully began to explore, followed shortly after by a curious Michelangelo.

The two were soon eagerly wandering the living room, chirping and squeaking in awe at everything they could see.

"Can you keep an eye on Leonardo and Michelangelo for a moment? I've gotta check Donatello’s stitches." Shen asked.

Yoshi nodded and followed the two adventurers while Shen knelt by the dog bed and picked the purple tot in her arms. The baby gave a small, indignant squeak.

“Not much of a hugger, are you?” Shen chuckled a little. The baby pouted at her “Or you can hold a bit of a grudge...” She guessed he didn’t like the operation from last night...

_ “Could they remember recent events?” _

Shen filed away the question for later and focused to check Donatello’s stitches, surprised to see the wound was healing very fast. Looks like the Ooze  _ was _ engineered to have a crazy fast healing factor. If her calculations were correct, she could safely remove the stitches in a few days.

“Fascinating. You, little guys, are amazing.”

The softshell perked up a little, looking up at Shen in awe. The vet smiled and nodded “Yes. You  _ are _ amazing.”

The tot’s pout fell, replaced by a big, happy smile, the very first smile he gave since she had met him. His black eyes sparkled with joy.

Shen’s heart melted. “Aw, so cute!” He-  _ Wait _ …

The turtle... _ understood her?...  _ Shen wasn’t unaware of cats or dogs reacting to compliments, but  _ turtles- _ ? Could they-?!

Her thoughts were cut short by Raphael, who was trying to climb out the dog bed and up her leg but was having some technical difficulties thanks to one of the blankets that got ensnared in his shell’s spikes.

He looked up at her and then back at Donatello, whining. Shen smiled reassuringly at him and stroked his head tenderly.

“Don’t worry. He's going to be alright, Raphie." she said.

Wait…  _ Raphie _ ? Oh boy,  _ nicknames _ . It was confirmed. The tots had won her over.

Donatello spotted his two younger brothers wandering around the room and squirmed in Shen’s arm, chirping insistently and trying to reach toward them with his tiny hands.

Shen understood his intentions and chuckled "You’ll need to wait a little bit more before you can move around, Donnie." she looked over at Yoshi, who was following the tots every step of the way, even if with a little bit of difficulty since the tots kept changing directions and Leonardo proved to be a fast crawler. 

She snickered at the funny scene. Unlike what most would think, Yoshi was pretty good with kids. On a few occasions, during the filmmaking of “Jitsu for Justice”, it happened that one or two members of the cast had to bring their children at work. And what best way to keep them entertained if not watch Yoshi reenacting some of his best moves for his fans?

"You know...For turtles, they are really fast." Yoshi spoke up. 

Leonardo had scurried his way under the sofa and Yoshi was trying to pull him out from under, while Michelangelo was aiming to climb his way up a chair.

"Need help?" Shen chuckled.

"Everything is under control!" he insisted, finally succeeding to pull the slider from under the sofa (and catching a collection of dust bunnies in the meantime) and quickly reaching to get Mikey before he could flop on the floor. "They are lively little ones.”

“I think we should clear a room to keep them in for a while. Or at least until we can turtle-proof the house to make sure they don’t hurt themselves or get lost." She couldn't have the babies wander freely. At least not until she had properly secured it to make sure they wouldn’t accidentally eat something unhealthy or chewed the wires as a few pets did.

Suddenly, a deep, low rumble startled the two adults.

"Uh, w-what was that?" Shen asked. The storm was over and the sky was clear.

Another rumble and the two grown-ups looked at Raphael, who was still sitting on the dog bed and curiously checking his lower plastron.

"Uh...I think it’s Red."

Shen slapped a hand to her forehead "FOOD! HOLY FRICK, YOSHI! WE FORGOT TO FEED THEM!!" 

_ And so begins one crazy story... _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updating my fanfic for the #saverottmnt week. It's Fanart/Fanfic Friday!
> 
> I hope I could convey the feels and fluff I was looking to write down. First-time parenting, more tots screentime and "Wolf Children" shenanigans coming soon!
> 
> Thank you for reading! Comments, hints, and suggestions are always appreciated! See you next time!
> 
> One last thing! For those who are interested in joining the fight to save this wonderful series that is Rise of the TMNT, please look up to:
> 
> https://64.media.tumblr.com/24c842946ef416314abf4e07f9269f4b/310937a284c8f3be-c3/s2048x3072/e77b7ffd6f81155fe9ca58a325eb341c42ee298a.png

**Author's Note:**

> English is not my first language and I'm undecided af, so the story may suffer modifications in time and correct errors. I'm so sorry! 
> 
> I hope you liked the first chapter and comments, thoughts and suggestions are always welcome and appreciated.
> 
> Thank you for reading and see ya next time ;D


End file.
